An 11-year-old Nevada boy on his way to school Friday morning was fatally shot in a road-rage incident over position on a congested Las Vegas-area freeway, authorities said.
Tyler Matthew Johns, 22, was arrested at the scene of the shooting on charges of open murder and discharging a firearm at a vehicle, Henderson police said.
"We lost a life today that we didn’t have to lose,” Police Chief Reggie Rader told reporters. “An 11-year-old was on his way to school, and this senseless act took his life.”
Authorities said the shooting happened around 7:30 a.m. on Interstate 215 westbound in Henderson, a city adjacent to Las Vegas to the southeast.
The two drivers “became involved in a road-rage incident when they began jockeying for positions, trying to pass each other on the congested freeway,” Rader said.
One car passed the other on the shoulder of the freeway, known as the Las Vegas Beltway, he said, and both drivers got into an argument through their rolled down windows.
“Our suspect then produced a handgun and fired one round at our victim vehicle, tragically striking an 11-year-old passenger who was sitting in the back seat of that vehicle,” he said.
The child's stepfather then rammed the other car, causing both to stop, and a passing Las Vegas police officer was flagged down and took the suspect into custody, Rader said.
The suspect was the only person in the incident with a gun, Rader said.
Johns was jailed without bond Friday night, according to online Henderson records.
It was not immediately clear if Johns had an attorney. A phone number for relatives who might speak on his behalf could not be found in online records Friday night.
Rader on Friday called for drivers to be patient, saying, "We have an obligation to look out for each other."
"The holidays are coming up, and we usually have congestion and tempers run high. It is not worth it to engage in this type of behavior, on either party," he said.
